Tim McLaughlin, 34, is one dad who's got this Father's Day thing down pat and then some.

"It's been a total Santa Fe kind of day," said McLaughlin, a teacher at Santa Fe Indian School, as he was helping his daughter, Anja, 4, dive into a cup of chocolate ice cream during a Father's Day celebration at the Railyard.

His holiday began earlier with late breakfast at one of his favorite spots, the Guadalupe Cafe, then onto the Railyard for an afternoon of sunshine, green grass, a little Zydeco and a variety of kids-and-dads events including face painting and crafts courtesy of the Santa Fe Children's Museum.

But even at 3 in the afternoon, this man's Father's Day had only just begun. From the Railyard Park, McLaughlin was headed for the Body shop, courtesy of his partner, Madi Santo, for a full-body massage. "I'm looking forward to that," he said.

And then, after that, "I think there is some kind of surprise dinner," McLaughlin said.

McLaughlin was one of scores of Santa Fe dads who showed up at the Railyard's first annual Father's Day extravaganza sponsored by a collection of community and business groups including the New Mexico Alliance for Fathers and Families, Reel Fathers and Warehouse 21.

John Schultze, 46, was showing off all the cool stuff on a classic 1964 Blue Chevrolet Impala convertible parked on display behind a totally electric car, which could be rented, and a city of Santa Fe firetruck, which could not.

"Don't touch the car," Schultze warned his son Matthew, 11, who was showing a little too much interest in the sparkling Impala.

"I had one kind of like this," Schultze bragged to his son, referring to a beloved '65 customized Impala hard-top he used to drive around Maryland.

Over at the Pirates of the Caribbean bouncy house, dad David Correia, 41, a professor of American studies at The University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, was watching his daughter, Harper, bounce around with about a dozen other kids.

Eddie Sandoval, 36, was helping his daughter Saltina, 5, create a turtle from a rock and strips of leather fabric at the Children's Museum tent.

"It's hot but it's great," Sandoval said of the event.

Other dads were scouting for what little shade could be found in the 90-degree temperatures.

Jerry Baca, 37, had found a bit of shade for his family underneath a very small tree.

Daughters Santanna 12, and Bianca, 9, were entertaining themselves and others on the green with their tumbling and somersaults.

At about the same time, Dikki Du and his Zydeco Krewe were performing practice licks for a stage performance, and Wise Fool stilt walkers were climbing into their contraptions.

The evening was to end about 9:30 p.m. after an outdoors showing of the 1977 Steven Spielberg movie Close Encounters of the Third Kind.

Dennis Carroll can be reached at Carroll.News1@gmail.com.